


Heart Beats Fast

by storyofmine



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Crushes, Hospitals, M/M, Medical Inaccuracies, Narry - Freeform, Nurse!Louis, bestfriend!liam, doctor!harry, sick!niall
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-11
Updated: 2018-10-11
Packaged: 2019-07-29 17:07:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,249
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16268633
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/storyofmine/pseuds/storyofmine
Summary: Niall has been sick for a few days now. Stubborn as he is, he doesn't want to get checked-out by a doctor. When Niall's condition worsens drastically by night, Liam - his best friend - has no other choice than to drive him to the hospital - before it's too late.





	Heart Beats Fast

**Author's Note:**

> Title taken from 'A Thousand Years' by Christina Perri
> 
> Hey, 
> 
> before you read this story, I wanted to point out that I'm not a doctor, nor do I have extensive knowledge about the medical stuff. The things happening in this One Shot are based on my ideas and purely fictional. Any medical inaccuracies are my fault. I decided to write certain things because the fictional stories I write need to go a certain way to turn out how I want them to.
> 
> I'm not saying that what I have written is wrong, I just wanted to explain that there MIGHT be some inaccuracies because I am not a medical.

The last time Niall Horan had a doctor's appointment, he screamed when the intern called out his name, tried hiding in a cupboard and "accidentally" kicked the doctor's knee while said doctor tried giving him a flu jab.

If you can't tell: Niall hated doctors and everything related to medicine with a passion.

Which might explain why he'd rather lay in bed and cough his lungs out than see a doctor. He didn't like the fake smiles or the other ill people in the waiting room. The interns were rude most of the time and in the end, the doctor would just prescribe some medicine which Niall wouldn't even use after all.

He just had a cold anyway. No need to be concerned or to panic, which Liam definitely did.

Liam - Niall's best friend and flatmate - had a heart made out of gold and his first priority was to look after his friends and family and make sure that they are fine. He was kind of like a papa bear - tall, muscular, protective, caring... But most importantly, he was the best friend Niall could wish for and he was incredibly thankful to have Liam Payne in his life.

Right now, Liam took it a bit too far though. At least in Niall's opinion.

Even though Niall was pretty sure he just had a cold, Liam was convinced it was something worse. He thought Niall wasn't in the right condition to think rationally and that's why his blond friend wouldn't admit that he had a brain splitting headache or that he was freezing although he sweat through two duvet covers.

Plus, Liam saw just how pale Niall really was and the way the purple bags underneath Niall's beautiful blue eyes looked painful. His blond locks sticked to his wet forehead and his lips looked almost blue. He hasn't eaten anything in a day and a half and the water, which Liam had to fight into him, left his body in the form of sweat practically in an instant. No need to put into words just how concerned the brown haired man really was.

Liam had tried to get Niall out of his bed to bring him to the doctor's office but not only did Niall gasp in pain every time Liam moved him but the blond boy said (more like exhaustedly whispered) some nasty things about not wanting to go to one of those pretend-healers who wanted to poison him.

As much as Liam loved his best friend, he absolutely didn't like his stubborn side. He just wanted to keep Niall safe and that was by taking him to a doctor before Niall felt worse.

Right now Liam couldn't do anything but watch his best friend laying restlessly in bed and changing the cool flannel on his forehead. It has been like this since midday. Before that, Niall felt ill as well but he couldn't do anything really since noon. It hurt Liam to see Niall like this. He just wanted to help.

Around dinner time, Liam left Niall's bedside for the first time in a few hours to get something to eat. Niall wouldn't want to eat something, Liam was sure about that, but he needed to at least try. So, that's why he took the leftover chicken soup out of the fridge in their kitchen and put it into the microwave to heat it up.

While Liam waited for the microwave to beep, he prepared a cheese sandwich for himself. Niall may not be hungry but Liam didn't eat anything all day as well and his stomach signaled him to eat something or else he'd be as useless as Niall was at the moment.

A few minutes went by and Liam sat back on Niall's mattress. After he put the food down on the side table, he caressed Niall's forehead with his hand, getting even more concerned about the heat the boy was radiating. It was actually very scary.

Niall grumbled but kept his eyes closed which caused Liam to chuckle lightly.

"Hey, sleepy head" he said quietly. "I brought chicken soup. You up to have some?"

Blue eyes slipped open, revealing a crack of ocean blue but it obviously took a lot of effort to not let them shut right away. "No, I'm sorry" Niall whispered back with his scratchy voice and even Niall had to admit that he wasn't the embodiment of health and happiness at the moment.

Liam shook his head. "No need to apologise, love. Are you sure you don't want to try a spoonful?"

Niall just shook his head and let his eyes close again. He fell asleep a few seconds later.

Liam sighed, got up from the mattress and sat down on the chair, next to the bed where he ate his sandwich and let his eyes rest on his sleeping friend's face.

\---

Liam startled awake.

His tired mind needed some time to remember where he was and what was happening.

He must have fallen asleep, seeing as it was dark outside which it wasn't the last time he had his eyes open. With a look around the room, he soon realised what caused him to wake up.

Wheezing and quiet sobs came from the bed and as tired as Liam might have been a second ago, he was wide awake now and jumped off his chair at lightning speed. He was at Niall's side in a heartbeat.

Said one still lay in bed but instead of sleeping peacefully, he was curled in a tight ball, his arms wrapped around himself and tears rolling out of his eyes, which he had shut tightly. The wheezing was heartbreaking and full of pain.

What was Liam supposed to do? He had to do something but what? Niall hated doctors - would he hate Liam if he were to bring him to a hospital? It was too late for a doctor's office, seeing as it was obviously night and the offices were closed.

He almost let out a sob himself but he managed to shake his head and keep calm. The pain he felt by watching Niall in such agony, shone bright in his eyes but he had to do it. There was no other way.

While slipping his arms underneath Niall's small frame and scooping him up in his arms, he explained what he did and hopefully distracted Niall from the pain.

"Shh, everything's going to be okay, love. I know you don't want to hear this but I can't help you at home and I don't know what to do, so I'm taking you to the hospital but I promise I'll be there the whole time and I won't let anything bad happen to you, okay?"

He didn't expect Niall to answer, which he didn't, and hurried outside towards his car where he opened the car door and laid Niall carefully down on the backseat. Niall didn't seem to notice what happened and the wheezing has stopped at some point which Liam hasn't even noticed. Niall was even paler than before and the sweat made him look like he just came out of the shower.

Now was the time for Liam to panic and to not lose any more time.

His fingers trembled while he put the key into the ignition and rushed to the hospital, probably breaking a lot of rules.

\---

Liam wasn't sure how long he's been sitting in the waiting area of the hospital, waiting for some kind of news about his best friend. It felt like ages but he knew it couldn't have been more than an hour.

After Liam made it to the hospital, doctors came rushing to him and took Niall, who at that point had some kind of seizure which was the most terrifying thing Liam has ever seen, away from him. They were saying things Liam didn't understand but he was pretty sure he wouldn't have understood even if he had some kind of knowledge about medicine because every spoken word sounded like he had cotton in his ears.

A nurse must've seen him standing all lost and panicked in the middle of the room because he remembered being pushed down on a chair in the room he was now sitting in but not how he got here. All he knew was that he needed to wait for someone to tell him what was going on with Niall.

He hasn't moved at all since sitting down on the hard plastic. Elbows resting on his knees, top of his body bent over and head in his hands. Did he cry? He didn't know.

There was another nurse at some point, asking him things about Niall. What his name was, how old he was, if he had any illnesses they had to know about... Liam knew he had answered but he couldn't retell his responses. Did they make any sense at all? Did he give the right answers?

Next to him, there sat a woman. She was already here when Liam came into the room but hasn't moved much, just like Liam. He didn't know what she was waiting for but neither did she about him, he thought. And- that made him a bit sad. He had his own worries and really didn't want to care about anyone else's and she had her own worries and concerns but it's weird to think about it. About how, after this, they probably won't ever meet again.

He debated if he should start a conversation but before he could open his mouth, the door to the waiting area opened and a nurse stood in the doorway. Both, the woman and Liam, turned their heads in his direction, waiting for him to speak up and to tell them who's waiting time was up.

The nurse's blue eyes landed on Liam and, with a calm voice, said his name. "Liam Payne?"

Liam, who guessed the nurse who questioned him earlier told this nurse his name, jumped off the chair and flew towards the nurse while sending an apologetic smile over his shoulder to the woman. She had her head hung low again and didn't seem to see it.

"That's me," he declared and followed the nurse, leaving the waiting area and closing the door.

"Right. I'll show you the way to Mr Horan's room and tell the doctor you're waiting for him. Sadly, I'm just the nurse and won't be able to provide much information but Doctor Styles will be more helpful," the nurse told him while they made their way down a few hallways. It wasn't what Liam wanted to hear but the nurse did his best.

"Thank you so much,...?" The sentence ended up being a question which the nurse answered in a heartbeat.

"Louis. I'm Mr Horan's nurse which means we'll see each other quiet often if my guess is right and you'll visit him all the time."

Liam's breath got stuck in his throat. "Wait," he said concerned, "what's wrong with Niall? Why would I see you often? Please, just tell me what's going on? Is Niall's condition so bad that he needs to stay here for long?"

Without slowing down his steps, Louis send a pity full look over his shoulder towards Liam. "I'm so sorry. Doctor Styles will be there for you soon and you'll be able to ask him about your friend's condition. All I can tell you right now is that Mr Horan is unconscious, moment of regaining conscious is unknown."

Those weren't the words Liam wanted to hear. He felt his shoulders go slack and his eyes casted over with worry. The guilt crashed upon him, together with the realisation that he could've prevented all this if he would've taken Niall to the hospital or a doctor sooner. Louis seemed to have read Liam's thoughts seeing as he stopped moving and turned around. This way he was facing Liam.

"Don't worry too much. It might've looked bad but in most cases it looks more scary than it is and promise me, I have seen worse. I'm sure you're friend will be alright soon enough."

Liam sent Louis a small smile. The nurse's words didn't sooth his worries one bit but he didn't want to sound rude by telling him that.

"Right", Louis said after a few more seconds of walking through a long hallway, "here's Mr Horan's room. I'll tell Doctor Styles you're waiting for him." And with those words, he went away, leaving Liam all alone in front of this big door with the number 313.

He hesitated. Did he want to see what was behind the door? Even though Louis has told him that it looked worse than it really was, it was a scary sight to see Niall lying all lifeless in the back of his car and Liam had no idea what his best friend looked like right now? Niall was still unconscious, that's what he knew, but to what extent would there be machines and other medical things Liam had no idea what to call? After having watched countless TV shows about hospitals and doctors in general, he expected the worse.

Well, there was only one way to find out.

He took a deep breath, raised his hand and laid it on top of the door handle which he then proceeded to push down. There was a moment of hesitance in his movement but in the end he slowly opened the door.

Despite the things they say on TV, it didn't look like Niall was sleeping. The frown on his forehead was too prominent, even though he wasn't conscious and the tube that went down his throat, which Liam knew was to take over breathing for Niall, seemed too painful to endure while asleep. Also, the way Niall lay on the bed was too unnatural of one who was sleeping peacefully, completely straight with his arms and hands placed neatly next to his body on top of the white blanket. Not to mention the heart monitor that was slowly beating the rhythm of Niall's heart.

Liam gulped. He needed a moment to compose himself before he closed the door and began walking towards a chair in the corner of the room that he took and carried over to the side of Niall's bed. After he put it down, he sat down and took Niall's hand into his own, sighing deeply.

"Don't you ever scare me like that again, you idiot. Don't you dare."

All there was to do for him was to wait for this Doctor Style or whatever his name was. If he wouldn't be here soon, Liam was sure he wouldn't be able to hold in his tears any longer.

\---

A knock on the door was what brought Liam back to the room. His mind has wandered far away, thinking about this and that, nothing specific but it did what Liam was hoping for and that was distraction. Now, he was back at Niall's side, still holding onto the slightly colder hand and feeling the nervousness creeping back at him after hearing the knock.

He coughed to clear his throat and told the person on the other side of the doo to "come in" but the door was already opening.

In came a man about Liam's age, wearing a doctor's coat. An encouraging smile was plastered across his face which was framed by long, brown locks. There was a clipboard in his hand and Liam hoped he'd get some answers. The doctor took a few long strides across the room - thanks to his obsenely long legs, it didn't take him more than 3 seconds - and reached out a hand for Liam to shake.

"Hello, I'm Mr Horan's doctor, Harry Styles. You must be Mr Payne if I'm not mistaken?" he asked while letting his words sound more like a known fact than a question.

Liam shook Doctor Styles hand while nodding. "That's me. Please, could you explain what happened?"

The doctor gave a nod and took a quick look down at the clipboard. "Of course. It's very simple but that doesn't mean it's less dangerous. Thanks to the papers you filled out when you brought him in, we know that Mr Horan has been ill for quiet some time now and hasn't been able to stay hydrated. That added to the high temperature Mr Horan had, put his body under extrem pressure which made his body shut down. There was not enough power left in his body to keep working. It didn't help that we were only able to treat him after his lungs almost collapsed but he's now as stable as he can be.

You might have gotten a bit scared after seeing the breathing tube but that's only until he's waking up and trying to reject it by himself. If he does that, it will be indicator enough for us to know that his lungs are strong enough to work on their own again.

That's the most important information. Do you have any questions, Mr Payne?" Doctor Styles finished his explanation and waited patiently for an answer.

Liam took a deep breath. That was a lot to take in. But Niall was stable and that was all that mattered at the moment. "Eh, do you know when he'll wake up?"

"We can't tell for sure but it shouldn't be too long now. I'd say one to two hours but if he's still asleep by then, then there is no need to worry. His body and mind are both completely exhausted and need all the time they can get to get their energy back." Doctor Styles said.

"Oh, okay", Liam mumbled and looked down at his best friend who was still lying on the bed completely motionless. "What about when he wakes up? You said something about him rejecting the tube? What does that mean?"

"Right", Harry Styles started. "As soon as he wakes up, you just push the nurse's button and a nurse will come in to take care of him. Mr Horan will probably choke on the tube and will try to remove it by force. You just have to make sure that he doesn't pull it out by himself. I won't lie, it's quiet the scary thing to see but it's a completely normal reaction and it won't hurt him. It's the feeling that's so uncomfortable. The tube takes over breathing for you but when you wake up and your lungs are fine to work on their own, your body signals you that something's wrong and you choke. But please don't panic when it happens. I know that's even harder now that I've explained what'll happen."

Liam's eyes were widened in shock and the realisation that he'll see Niall in pain again. He solemnly nodded and avoided the doctor's eyes.

Silence broke out and it was about to become awkward but then Doctor Styles nodded, combed through his hair with the hand that didn't hold onto the clipboard and turned around. "Alright, if you haven't got any other questions, I'll move on. The nurse will call me as soon as they removed the breathing tube. Drink some water in the meantime, Mr Payne." Then the brown-haired man was out of the door and Liam was alone again.

\---

The next time something worth mentioning happened was almost an hour later when there was some rustling of the blanket, soon followed by sounds of irritation and discomfort.

Liam's head shot up from his phone where he was busy writing messages to Niall's family and their friends to let them know what happened.

Niall's eyes were opened wide in shock, staring back at Liam with such intense panic that Liam himself felt panic bubbling up in his chest. The next thing to happen were Niall's arms shooting up to claw at his neck while he started to gag which Doctor Styles predicted.

There was no time to lose. Liam jumped out of the chair he had spent the last hours in and got closer to the bed where he found the nurses' button and hit it. Then he grabbed Niall's flailing arms and trapped them on the mattress. He made eye contact with the distressed blond and tried to calm him.

"I know you're scared, Ni but you need to stay calm. A nurse is coming and they'll help you. I'm right here."

In that moment the door opened and the nurse from before, Louis, came rushing in with some medical stuff on a trolley he was pulling behind him. He left the door open and told Liam calmly to "Please leave the room for a few minutes. I'll inform you when I finished treating Mr Horan."

Liam, too shocked by the events, didn't even protest before slowly leaving the room backwards, his eyes never trailing from Niall and Louis who was now talking to Niall and preparing the procedure of removing the breathing tube. Then he closed the door to the hallway and sat down on the opposite side of the wall. There was no bench and no chair but Liam wanted, needed to be as close to his best friend as possible which was why he didn't even mind sitting on the cold hospital floor.

Brown eyes were glued to the door and nothing indicated what was happening behind it. No sound could be heard. Liam felt so completely exhausted.

He already expected he'd to have to wait for a long time again but then his phone rang and he looked down on the device which he took out of his jeans pocket. The screen was lit up and the name Maura - Niall's mother - was written across it.

Liam cleared his throat before answering the call. "Hello? Maura?"

"Liam, dear, I read your message. What happened?" she asked, trying to hide the panic but Liam knew her well enough to pick the scared tone out of her words.

"Don't worry, he's okay now, Maura. His lungs stopped working and I brought him to the hospital but he's being treated now and his doctor told me he's going to be fine. So, no need to worry. He'll be up in no time."

"Oh Liam" Maura cried which was like a stake to the heart for Liam. "We're coming to London right now. I'm not sure which plane we'll get but if he asks for us - we're on our way, alright? Will you tell him?"

"Of course I will. Stay safe, do you hear me?"

"We will. See you soon, dear."

"You too, Maura."

And the call ended. Liam leant his head against the wall and set his eyes on the ceiling. He tried staying calm and levelheaded but he couldn't stop the single tear running down his cheek now that the stress has lessened a bit.

Louis, the nurse, was still working in the room and Liam closed his eyes for a few minutes to try and make the tension leave his tensed muscles.

\---

The realisation that he fell asleep came when Louis had to gently shake him awake.

"Hey mate, you can go in now. Mr Horan is awake and aware of everything. If you'd like you can go talk to him now" the nurse explained and stood back up.

Liam nodded with slight confusion showing on his face but he stood up while leaning against the wall of the hallway and straightened his back, making it crack a bit. He thanked Louis and walked back over to the door 313, taking in a deep breath and opened it for a second time.

The blonde's eyes were closed but as soon as he heard the door opening, he opened them as well to see who came to visit him. A small smile lit up his face when he saw it was his best friend. He croaked out a hoarse "Liam." and Liam almost winced at the pain and scratch in his voice.

"Hey love, how are you feeling?" Liam asked although the redness of Niall's cheeks, together with the exhaustion written all over his face and the heart monitor next to the hospital bed were talking for themselves. He went back to the chair he spent the last hours in but pushed it closer to the bed before sitting down and taking one of Niall's hands in his own.

"Could be better, could be worse. Louis told me what happened. Must've scared you to death." Niall's words were hard to understand because of the hoarseness of his voice and the exhaustion induced quietness to it. His eyes were already closing again but this time it wouldn't be as dangerous as the last time he fell asleep and stopped breathing. Speaking of - the breathing tube has been removed which made Niall look a bit better already.

Liam chuckled. He felt so much relieve just by seeing Niall awake and responsive. "You did. I don't want to ever see you like that again, you hear me?"

Niall mumbled a confirmation but seeing as his eyes were closed and quiet snores were following that hum, Liam knew his best friend hadn't heard what the older one just said. A small smile appeared on the brunettes lips and he leant back against the hard backrest.

\---

A few hours later found the both of them awake and Niall was now sitting up and slowly eating some kind of soup which, according to him, tasted worse than the one his dad cooked whenever Niall was sick as a kid and that was the most offensive thing somebody could say because as lovely as Bobby was, he couldn't cook at all. At least Niall was eating something.

The two of them were talking about unimportant things when there was a knock on the door and a few seconds later Doctor Harry Styles pushed his head through the crack of the door. He smiled widely, opened the door wider and entered the room. It was an unexplainable mistery for Niall how some people can be this energetic in the morning.

"Well, hello there, Mr Horan. Had a good night's sleep? I just want to take a quick look at you before I leave the two of you alone again" Doctor Styles greeted and made his way over to the bed where Liam pushed the side table out of the way. Niall complained about his food being rolled away from him but seeing his doctor coming closer, made the heart monitor jump over a beat.

Doctor Styles didn't seem to notice - that was a bit worrying - but Liam did and he couldn't help but chuckle quietly at the realisation that his best friend seemed to have a small crush on the brown haired doctor.

"Okay, I guess?" Niall answered unconvincingly.

"Alright" Doctor Styles chuckled and took an otoscope out of his pocket. After that, he turned on the small light on the device and started explaining what he was about to do. "I'll shine into your eyes with this very annoying light and you just follow it, alright?"

Niall nodded and gulped which made the doctor smile.

The doctor reached, without another warning, forward and held Niall's chin gently with his left hand, the right one was holding the otoscope. He softly pushed Niall's head from the left to the right side while checking hiy eyes' reflexes. This time he did notice the way the heart monitor's rhythm picked up and it made an obvious smirk appear on Doctor Styles' lips. Liam was trying hard not to laugh out loud but he couldn't hide the wide smile behind the hand he was holding in front of his mouth. Niall was just furiously blushing on the bed and pretending to not notice the funky noises the heart monitor was making.

Doctor Harry Styles proceeded to finish the check-up and after doing everything he had to and taking notes on the clipboard he excused himself and left the room without another word.

The door hasn't been closed completely before Liam couldn't hold back the laugh anymore. It made Niall blush even more and he just wanted the earth to swallow him whole. Because that wasn't possible, he pulled the blanket as far up as possible and hid underneath it.

"Very smooth, Horan" Liam chuckled but stood up to pat Niall's head calmingly.

A few minutes later, Louis came into the room, a confused expression on his face. "Does anyone have any idea why Styles left this room all dreamy and heart-eyed?"

It made Liam laugh uncontrollably and Louis look even more confusedly. Niall groaned out of frustration and embarrassment.

\---

The day has finally come. Niall spent the last 8 days in the hospital, being under constant observation and uncountable tests but the doctors pronounced him completely healthy and not on the brink of death anymore and Niall was more than happy to be able to go back home again.

Doctor Styles was the one to tell the news and he already said his goodbyes after telling Niall and Liam about the precautions they had to remember and Niall couldn't deny the sad feeling inside his tummy after the attractive doctor had left the room in the end.

The both of them just finished getting Niall dressed in his own clothes, when there was a knock on his hospital room and Louis pushed his head inside. He smiled at seeing the two boys he started to befriend still there and entered the room completely, a big smile on his face.

"Ready to go, Niall?" he asked and Niall nodded feverishly.

"Can't wait to sleep in my own bed tonight." And it was true. Niall hasn't missed anything as much as his bed.

"I can imagine" Louis chuckled. "Now, before you go, I've got your prescription here. You need to head to the pharmacy right away and get it. Take it two times a day, in the morning and in the evening. The pharmacist will explain this as well. And-" he said and smirked mishieviously, "here's another note Harry wanted me to give to you before you left." He handed over a small, torn-out notebook page and Niall took it.

"There's a phone number on it. Whose is it?" he asked and looked up at Louis who was looking at him like he was kidding.

"You've got three guesses. I'll see you two around. Bye" the nurse yelled and waved before leaving the room. Niall turned around, giving the note another glance and looked at Liam, hoping for an answer.

"Well Nialler, I think it could be the one from a certain doctor but let's find out at home, alright? I don't want to spend another second in this building."

Niall's cheeks were covered in a light blush after realising whose number it was. They were about to leave the room but Niall had to do something first. He opened the side table of the hospital bed, took out the pen he knew was there and wrote something on the note. Then he put the pen back, turned around and smiled at Liam who was carrying the heavy bag.

"We can go now" the blonde said and left the room he had spent the last week in while happily humming a melody.

The note was safely tucked in his pocket. He pictured it in front of his inner eye.

It said 'Call me, love', followed by a phone number and Niall had added some hearts and the name 'Harry' to it.

He couldn't wait to go home.


End file.
